Hand-held indicia-reading devices such as hand-held mobile computers and bar code scanners are used in numerous environments for various applications (e.g., hospitals, warehouses, delivery vehicles, etc.). For example, a large percentage of retailers, notably grocery stores and general consumer merchandisers, rely on barcode technology to improve the efficiency and reliability of the checkout process.
Many kinds of hand-held indicia-reading devices utilize a traditional gun-shaped design (e.g., form factor). During the retail checkout process, for instance, a gun-style hand-held indicia-reader is generally used by the cashier to provide additional flexibility (e.g., for coupon checking, loyalty card scanning, or shopping cart scanning). The gun-shaped form factor provides an indicia-reader that is easy to handle and use for intensive hand-held scanning.
One of the design challenges of hand-held indicia-readers, including those having a traditional gun-shaped form factor, is that the reader's shape does not lend itself to easily placing all electronics, including connectors, onto a single printed circuit board (PCB). This is because the scanning electronics typically reside in the top portion of the indicia-reader (i.e., the head) while the host connection point is generally located at the bottom of the handle. Accordingly, this kind of design often requires the use of an internal cable that electrically connects the host connector to the PCB containing the electronics.
The requirement of an internal cable to electrically connect the host connector to the PCB results in a number of disadvantages. For instance, the addition of the internal cable adds to the overall cost of the indicia-reader. The internal cable also provides a potential failure point during the life of the product.
Furthermore, the handle of a traditional hand-held indicia-reader is typically a complicated mechanical part that has both plastic and rubber individual components that must be assembled. These individual mechanical parts increase costs associated with designing and manufacturing the indicia-reader. As one example, a mechanical part at the host connection point (i.e., a handle's end cap) is often required to complete the handle assembly.
Manufacturing the handle may also require more complex tooling including a secondary over-mold process. These additional steps likewise increase costs.
Moreover, because host cable may be subjected to high instances of flexing, the cable typically requires a strain relief at the base of the handle.